Research for Work and Health Unit: Privacy notice

In line with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), this privacy notice sets out the legal basis for processing data in relation to this research project. This includes who will have access to your personal data, how your data will be used, stored and deleted and who you can contact with a query or a complaint.

Who will have access to my personal data?

The government has had ambition to reduce the disabled employment gap over the last five years and has introduced new employment support services to help disabled people and those with long term health conditions. However, over the past 18 months the pandemic has had a drastic effect on employers and the labour market. This research will help us to understand the effects for disabled people and those with long term health conditions.

IES is interviewing employers in West Midlands Combined Authority and Sheffield City Region. The purpose of these interviews is to develop a better understanding of how the pandemic has affected businesses, their workforce and recruitment in these areas.

In order to arrange these interviews, your name and contact details (phone number or email address) will be shared with the IES research team. Staff working for Qa Research Ltd will seek your permission to be contacted for the purposes of this study before sharing these details.

Your contact details will be stored on an encrypted server, with access restricted solely to members of the research team. Even after these details have been shared, you are still free to withdraw from the research and can decline to take part in an interview without having to give a reason.

If you agree to take part in a research interview, any information you provide will be summarised in an anonymised format – this means we will remove any information that could be used to identify you.

What is the legal basis for processing my data?

The Work and Health Unit is the data controller for this project. This means that they are responsible for deciding the purpose and legal basis for processing data. For this project, the legal basis for processing data is Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation where: “processing is necessary for the purposes of the legitimate interests pursued by the controller or by a third party, except where such interests are overridden by the interests or fundamental rights and freedoms of the data subject which require protection of personal data, in particular where the data subject is a child.”

This will include sharing personal information with the third party conducting the research project (i.e. The Institute for Employment Studies). 

How will my data be treated?

If you are invited and choose to take part in an interview, the information you give will only be used for purposes of this study. IES will produce a report that summarises the main findings from all the interviews. Individuals will not be named, nor will any information be included that could reveal their identity.

Your personal information will be securely deleted from the IES systems six months after the project is complete and the final report has been published (currently estimated to be February 2022).

Who can I contact if I would like to withdraw my interview data?

You have the right to withdraw the information you have provided as part of the interviews before the completion of this project. If you have taken part in an interview but would like your data withdrawn, please contact: becci.newton@employment-studies.co.uk

Who can I contact with a query about how my data will be used?

If you have any questions about how your data will be used, please contact Becci Newton: becci.newton@employment-studies.co.uk.

Who can I contact with a complaint?

Under GDPR, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office at www.ico.org.uk